Michael the Archangel and Jesus

The JWs teach that Jesus is Michael the Archangel. He existed as Michael before he came to earth and became Jesus, and then returned to heaven once again as Michael. Don't believe me? Read it for yourselves.

"So the evidence indicates that the Son of God was known as Michael before he came to earth and is known also by that name since his return to heaven where he resides as the glorified spirit Son of God."—Reasoning from the Scriptures, 1985, Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, p. 218

First, we should examine the scriptures that include Michael the Archangel.

Daniel 10:13--"But the prince of the kingdom of Persia was withstanding me for twenty-one days; then behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left there with the kings of Persia.

There is already a problem here. If Michael is one of the chief princes, that indicates there are more of them. Jesus is supposed to be a unique, one of a kind being. (John 3:16) But here, if he is indeed Michael, is listed as one among a group of equals.

Daniel 10:21--"However, I will tell you what is inscribed in the writing of truth. Yet there is no one who stands firmly with me against these forces except Michael your prince.

Not any indication here of how this connects to Jesus.

Daniel 12:1--"Now at that time Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued.

Here Michael is listed as a great prince during end times. Wouldn't he be mentioned as a King if he and Jesus were the same being?

Revelation 12:7--And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war,

Michael and his angels? Does this prove that he must be Jesus? Not at all. A general will lead his soldiers under his command in to battle, but he is still following orders of a higher ranking officer. If a claim is made that the angels were his, couldn't we also make the identical claim that Michael is God? Archangel is a higher rank than angel, so it is fairly easy to surmise that even so, he is still an angel, and therefore falls under the same laws that govern those angels.

Jude 1:9--But Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him a railing judgment, but said, "The Lord rebuke you!"

Jesus rebuked the devil. Yet Michael was not allowed to. In all of those verses, nothing indicates that Jesus and Michael are the same being. The strength of the argument from the JWs comes in the following verse.

1 Thessalonians 4:16--For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

Since it is the lord himself descending out of heaven with the voice of an archangel, surely this must mean that Jesus and Michael are one and the same. Then again, doesn't having God's trumpet mean that Jesus is God? You can't claim part of the verse as truth and discard the rest of it. The argument needs to be consistent with the entire verse.

There are other verses to consider. Hebrews chapter one is all about Jesus being much better than the angels.

Verse 4 states--having become as much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent name than they.

Verse 5 adds--For to which of the angels did God ever say, "You are my Son; today I have become your Father"? Or again, "I will be his Father, and he will be my Son"?

If Jesus is the son of God, yet no angel has ever been told that, wouldn't that leave Michael out as well?

Verse 6 says--And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says, "AND LET ALL THE ANGELS OF GOD WORSHIP HIM."

Notice how it says all of the angels, which of course would include the archangels.

Hebrews 2:5--It is not to angels that he has subjected the world to come, about which we are speaking.

But in Luke 1:32-33 it says the following--He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end." 

Or Revelation 1:5--and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood,

I don't know about you, but I see some major differences there. But here is more verses to consider.

Col. 1:16-17--For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

All things created by him.....including the angels.

I could probably hunt down more scriptures to add and thoroughly dismantle this teaching from the JWs, but I think the information that I listed is solid enough. Once again, the JWs have taken something out of context and put their twisted stamp on it. And why not. They once taught that Michael the Archangel was the Pope. Apparently they claim to have a new and better understanding of another falsehood they have created.